The new thing in home decorating and designing is taking it to the internet! That’s right, e-decorating, room-design online or virtual-room design, no matter the name, the results are the same. You can get your master bedroom or the whole house, redecorated online now!

Maybe because of the DIY spin on things from magazines and television shows, this new craze of online interior decorating has become the hot new trend. With the ability to order what you need online for that new swanky bedroom or handsome study, why not employ an online interior decorator too?

Doesn’t that lose some of its appeal though? Surely you’re lacking that one-on-one, personal touch? Perhaps; but this is the way the world has gone, with everything from buying groceries to changing your driver’s license. There are advantages to online interior decorating too:

Budget and Style
In person or online, the designer can still provide a consultation. It becomes less expensive for both the customer and the designer as the travel-cost and time is eliminated. The more costs you can eliminate, the easier on the budget.

Skype has brought a whole new visual element to us and interior designers now consider this and the web-cam as their tools-of-trade.

Inventory, Measuring and Photography
Gone are the days of the interior designer having to be there in person to take measurements and photos. Your advisor will guide you on how to measure for curtains, paint, wallpaper and more, again via the web-cam and Skype.

Customers can send photos of the room, along with the measurements via email, and the interior designer comes back with further questions and even orders the items needed for direct delivery to the customer.

Concept of Design
Nothing has changed here. Whether in person or online, your professional designer will still talk with you, look through the photos you send and pull together the concept you are looking for.

By guiding customers through the process of measuring rooms and space, they will share websites with the customer to view color palettes and product recommendations instead of doing so in person.

Buying and Installing
Where the on-site interior designer will implement and coordinate buying and installing the items needed for your remodeling or renovation, they are often using sources that aren’t available to the public.

The online designer has two options; firstly, they make all the purchases themselves, have it delivered direct and arrange any contractor needed for the installation, or secondly, they will guide the customer through the process of buying products more cheaply from online-retailers leaving the customer to employ their own contractors.

Time Whilst the online architect puts the job in motion by making the purchases and setting up the installation process, the time frame is left in the customer’s hands. They can set their own pace in setting up the installation schedule that best suits their budget and time-frame.

Pricing
Customers could expect to pay an upfront retainer fee if they employ the services of an on-site interior architect, plus either an hourly or flat rate and the total cost can be prohibitive.
An online interior designer normally has a flat rate fee and is much less expensive.

For the person who desires the designer feel and look in their home or office but doesn’t have an open-ended budget, the online interior designer is the way to go. The customer may have to do some of the legwork themselves, but they’ll be getting the same experienced guidance that they would with an on-site professional.

Most homeowners around the world are consistently seeking new ways via which they can get the results they want to amplify their home’s interiors. In order to accomplish this, they are ever willing to go the extra mile and get access to the best of tips and tricks provided by some of the most reputed names and brand in the interior designing industry. Today, one of the most formidable platforms that has been able to provide homeowners with this level of expertise is that of the internet where its plethora of blogs, sites and portals have provided individuals with enthusiastic aspects via which it can be achieved. There are a number of interior designing ideas that can be procured from the web world, each of which are capable of inspiring homeowners to make its applications vivid in their own households. Fact of the matter is that the World Wide Web is overloaded with these interior design ideas that it can become a daunting task to find the perfect ones that are capable of living up to the expectations of those that need it. What needs to be understood is that the best of interior designing ideas can only come from the best in the industry. Hence, if you are opting for a platform to provide you with the best of interior design ideas, you would need to scout the web effectively so as to make sure you can get the best of tips, advice and DIY notes.

As people around the world keep on trying to find new ideas to amplify their home’s interiors, they are poised with the most difficult task ahead of them – How to do it? This is where online blogs and portals step in and offer individuals with the best of ways which will help them accomplish their tasks. There are a few sites that offer individuals with samples to be inspired by. There are other sites that offer social networking platforms so that homeowners can interact with other interior designers across the globe. Truly speaking, the internet has certainly brought the world closer together. With the help of such a multitude of options available in the online world, home owners and interior designing fanatics will be able to get their next big idea adorned into their own homes. If these sites and informational portals do not serve up its purpose to those interested, individuals can opt for DIY sites that offer individuals with eBooks and manuals that would help them achieve their desired interior results as per their financial and personal specifications. If you are on the lookout to get inspired with interior design ideas, you would be able to find these informational resources on the net to help you out. Scout the web world frequently from the best of places and stay abreast of the latest happenings that will help transform your home into an interior haven. What you need to understand is that you should always keep yourself to ideas.

Interior Designers need to understand their whole marketing strategy and how each of its 7 constituent tactics work together to grow the business.

This article is a checklist. Go through each of the points I’ve listed and apply it to your sales and marketing in your business. My opinion on what are particularly important marketing communications for interior designers are highlighted in bold and might differ if you target business rather than the public. Let me know your thoughts:

1. Search Marketing – Get your prospect at the time of their decision-making.

And as a PS I will follow this up with 2 more articles; one about different ways of engaging (financially) with clients; and a second about using Facebook for an interior design business. The first comment, below, reflects a theme running through many questions posed to me: website designers (techies) and ad agencies (space sellers) are trying to get you to part with your hard earned design fees; I would read a book on digital marketing that comes more from the marketing end rather than the technology end eg. “Mastering Web 2.0 bu Susan Rice Lincoln”, that’s a good way to start. DON’T SPEND £10k/$15k on a new web site think about your customers and how they behave, your marketing communications need to latch into their behaviors.